Acharya Tulsi
Man belongs to the highest category of living creatures in the world.There are three things that put him in the highest category: his body structure, his mind and his sense of discretion. The spinal column is very important in his body. He is able to stand erect and walk only with its help. Otherwise, he would have been like any other four-legged animal. His cerebrum is highly developed. New discoveries of science have been possible because of this. His sense of discretion is awakened, because of which he is able to draw a line of distinction between what is acceptable and what is unacceptable. It is these three factors that make man distinct from other animals.
Quadrangle of Human Relations
Since man is a thinking being, the world of his relations is very wide. From one point of view, he is related to all living beings of the world. The concept of "the whole world is nothing but one family” [1]has been based on the wide scope of human relations. This concept covers not only the living creature like animals and birds and small creatures like worms and ants and other insects, but also the microscopic forms of life like the earth, water, vegetables and so on. This all-pervading outlook is very much useful, but it is not easy to grasp its pervasiveness and act accordingly.
The foregoing discussion is based on a certain definite concept. In practical terms, human relations can form a quadrangle. He is first connected with his family. Then comes his relations with society. In the third side reverberates his national consciousness and the fourth side links him with the Universal Soul. If man would understand his relations in their proper context and maintain them with honesty, he could achieve a great deal.
The Problem of Remaining Alone (Advaita)
Man would have faced no problem had he been alone. Being alone means the absence of duality. When there is no duality, whom would he love and with whom would he quarrel? In the state of advaita, no one would belong to him and no one would be an alien. When there is no advaita, who would be small and who would be big? Accumulation of wealth, grabbing and scrambling, smuggling, etc. is encouraged only in the state of dvaita. If man is alone, there would be no possibility of any problems coming up. It can be said on the basis of this kind of thinking that being in the state of dvaita is the biggest problem.
Looking at the possibility of the problems of being in the state of dvaita, man may wish to be alone. But even being alone is not within his power. Loneliness breaks the spirit of man. Not only man, even Lord Brahma was not happy to be alone. This Puranic belief throws light on the significance and usefulness of human relations.
Why Did the Search for Solutions stop?Even with the fear that being two or many instead of one creates problems, man is not able to remain alone. That is because he knows to find answer to all problems. What is the use of the abilities he has acquired, if he does not find answer to the problems? If man continues to think and understand and finds his own path, no problem could become an impediment. The trouble arises when man does not understand either himself or the problems, finds solutions to the problems arising out of human relations.
The animal world is very vast. The world of vegetation is vaster still. They too may be having their own problems, but they cause no hardship to man. Had these been marked by sensitivity, man would have certainly faced difficulties. Sensitivity is a mirror that reflects the vibrations of the pleasure and pain of all living creatures. Ever since that mirror has become hazy, man has ceased thinking about other creatures. Exploiting the resources of the earth beyond the limit, waste of water and the activities that pollute water, cutting down the forests, etc. are the results of this very mentality. The depletion of the ozone layer between the earth and the sun is a very big danger for life. Despite the warnings given by the scientists in this regard, man's relation with nature and the animal world are becoming more and more distant. If this is not insensitivity on the part of man, what else is it?
Feeling Responsible
Man possesses the power to solve the problem of the entire world. But he is entangled in his own problems to such an extent that he has no time left to think about anyone else. Even if we leave aside the problems of the world, human problems are by no means less pressing. The problems may be of environment or arms race, of terrorism or poverty, of casteism or communalism, of the erosion of moral values or increasing crack in human relations are all created by man himself. In that situation, the responsibility to find solutions to these problems also lies with him. It is necessary that man should honestly feel that the responsibility is on his shoulders.
It is said love in the heart of man is like the earth. If a single grain is sown in the earth, it produces ears bursting with corn. Relations also are enriched in a similar manner. But if someone does not sow in human relations the seeds of beneficence and does not nurture them, how would those relations be enriched? Granted that the number of the people who do something selflessly has always been insignificant. But when the very source of relations full of sweet feelings is dried up, how can the joyous stream flow out?
Who Can Walk in The Great Path?
The great alley of human relations is after all not so strewn with thorns; still the thinking of our times has created certain doubts about them. That is why man is varying of walking on that path.
The same mentality works behind the social diffusion and breakup of the family life. The torture of loneliness has once again compelled man to think. But it is not easy to find again the path, which has been abandoned. Individualist mentality, occupation, residence, education, transport, etc. are the problems that made man accept the ideas of nuclear families. But with that the problems have not decreased but increased. Since other family members do not share the joy and the sorrow, the entire burden has to be borne by the person all by himself. This experience becomes all the more trying in times of illness, separation, crippled condition, unemployment, etc.
Who can walk along that great path of maintaining human relations? The answer to this question is available in preaching’s of Mahavira. Bhagwan Mahavira said, "He who is valiant can travel along the great path. [2]" The valiant can find the solution to the problem. He can dive into the ocean of human relations and find the precious gems. And that person is valiant who believes in harmony, co-existence and in bearing hardships. If man freely uses his power of thinking and a sense of discretion to nurture human relations developed with sensitivity so that they grow from a seedling into a shady banyan tree, he can face the problems of the entire world.
